Top Headlines

MV Werften appoints Peter Fetten as President and CEO

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 10 April 2018 10 April 2018

Peter Fetten, a 38-year maritime industry veteran, will take over the President & CEO position of MV Werften as of May 1, 2018 and Jarmo Laakso will remain as Managing Director and step into the position of COO to focus on cruise shipbuilding.

Prior to joining MV Werften, Fetten was the Senior Vice President of Corporate Ship Refits at Carnival Corporation & PLC for the past nine years. He was also Vice President Newbuilding and Fleet Design of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. for eight years and held several executive positions during his 16 years at Blohm+Voss Shipyard. Fetten is also a past member of the board of directors of Grand Bahamas Shipyard and has worked together with Laakso at Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.

“We are pleased that Mr. Fetten is joining the MV Werften team. With his wealth of international experience in the design and construction of mega cruise ships and shipyard management, he will lead MV Werften on its mission to build Dream Cruises’ 204,000 gross ton Global Class ship, the largest ship to be built in Germany and Crystal Cruises’ 20,000 gross ton Endeavor Class ship, the world’s most luxurious expedition ship,” said Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay, Chairman & CEO of Genting Hong Kong.

Fetten is a German national and holds degrees in naval architecture and welding engineering from the University of Hamburg. “I look forward to returning to Germany and playing a pivotal role in revitalizing the shipbuilding industry in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, creating thousands of jobs in the cruise shipbuilding industry for the state,” said Peter Fetten.

Laakso, in his new role as COO, will focus on the overall yard and building strategy. He will report to Fetten and will remain as a Managing Director of the MV Werften group. “I welcome the opportunity to work with Peter Fetten again and together we will build good quality cruise ships that Germany will be proud of,” said Jarmo Laakso.

Vard wins two plus two ship contract from Viking

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 04 April 2018 04 April 2018

Vard Holdings Limited, which is controlled ny the Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri, has signed a Letter of Intent for the design and construction of two special cruise vessels for Viking Ocean Cruises, with an option for two more vessels. “The ships, with deliveries scheduled in Norway in 2Q 2021 and 2Q 2022 respectively, will be the first that Vard will build for this ship owner,” Vard said in a statement.

The potential contract value for two vessels is expected to be approximately NOK4.5 billion, equal to more than €460 million. The parties have a common intention to enter into final contract by mid-2018.

“The project, totally innovative, will be developed by Vard Design in close cooperation with the customer, according to the highest safety and reduction of the environmental impact standards, drivers which have increasingly greater weight also in the cruise sector.” Vard said, but did not provide further details.

Genting Hong Kong reports $244.3 million loss for 2017

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 02 April 2018 02 April 2018

Revenue from cruise and cruise-related activities of the Genting Hong Kong Group increased 11.9% to US$1,016.0 million in 2017 compared with US$908.1 million in 2016. Net Revenue in 2017 increased 14.0% to US$786.0 million from US$689.7 million in 2016 due to an increase in capacity days of 33.7%. The increase in capacity days was primarily due to the inclusion of full year operation of Genting Dream and Crystal Mozart as well as the launch of World Dream, Crystal Bach and Crystal Mahler during 2017.

Loss for the year of the Group improved from US$504.2 million in 2016 to US$244.3 million in 2017. The reduction in loss is mainly attributable to a number of factors including:

– One-off gain of US$205.0 million in respect of the disposal of certain available-for-sale investments and the absence of an impairment loss on ordinary shares in Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. of US$305.0 million in 2016; offset by:
– Start-up losses in the Dream Cruises brand for World Dream that arrived in Hong Kong and the re- positioning of Genting Dream to Singapore in November 2017, Crystal Cruises brand extensions in river cruises and the launch of AirCruises;
– Dream Cruises, launched slightly more than a year ago is performing well with improving occupancies and net yields in both the Hong Kong/Guangzhou and Singapore markets. However, the arrivals of new and large ships of competitors have caused smaller and older ships to relocate to ports where Star Cruises ships are positioned, creating downward pressures on occupancies and yields. This situation is expected to improve as competitors had announced approximately 18% reduction in capacity by the end of this year. Crystal Cruises faces significant competition in 2017, as competitors have launched new luxury ships, leading to approximately 16% increase in berth capacity in the luxury sector. The renovation of Crystal Symphony in late 2017 and Crystal Serenity in late 2018 with less passengers, more suites and an additional Chinese restaurant will enable free seating, an essential feature for Crystal Cruises to compete more effectively in the luxury sector;
– MV Werften recorded a full year start-up losses in 2017 as compared to an eight months losses in 2016. However, with the steel cutting for both the Endeavor Class and Global Class ships in January and March 2018 respectively, the Group will capitalise the shipbuilding cost as part of the new builds;
– Additional depreciation and amortisation of the shipyards along with new Dream and Crystal vessels; and
– Additional finance costs on new Dream and Crystal vessels.

The Directors have recommended a final dividend of US$0.01 per ordinary share for the year ended 31 December 2017 (2016: US$0.01 per ordinary share), which will be payable subject to shareholders’ approval at the 2018 Annual General Meeting of the Company.

Fincantieri to stretch two Grimaldi cruise ferries

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 30 March 2018 30 March 2018

After the signing of the letter of intent on March 5, Fincantieri and the Grimaldi Group signed the contract for the lengthening and refurbishment program for the cruise ferries Cruise Roma and Cruise Barcelona. The construction of the two mid-body sections will begin in 2018, while the completion of the works at Palermo shipyard is foreseen within summer 2019.

The two vessels, currently in service on the daily route Civitavecchia- Porto Torres-Barcelona with the Grimaldi Lines livery, have been built by Fincantieri shipyard in Castellammare di Stabia and delivered to the Neapolitan group in 2007 and 2008 respectively. They are 225 meters long, having a gross tonnage of 54,000 tons and capacity of transporting about 3,000 passengers, a 2,400 square meters car deck and approx. 3,000 linear meters for heavy vehicles.

About 600 additional lane meters for heavy vehicles, 80 sleeping accommodations in new passenger cabins, two new public spaces with a total capacity of 450 Pullman beds and a new Family self-service restaurant having about 270 seats, will be placed in the lengthening section, which is about 29 meters long. Furthermore important refurbishment works on the existing public areas will also be carried out, including the creation of a theme restaurant. Finally, safety equipment of the ship will be implemented in order to manage the increased passenger transport capacity.

At the end of the lengthening project, to be carried out by Fincantieri’s Ship Repair and Conversion, part of the Services division, each ship will be about 254 meters long, having a gross tonnage of about 63,000 tons and being able to transport 3,500 passengers, with a 3,000 square meters car deck and over 3,700 lane meters for heavy vehicles.

From the technological point of view cutting-edge solutions aimed at reducing the environmental impact and energy saving will be taken, such as the scrubber system for the exhaust gas cleaning as well as a system to power the ship during the turnaround time in ports, based on mega-lithium batteries, in order to avoid the use of the diesel-powered generators, achieving the goal of zero port emissions, pursued by the Grimaldi Group.

In the past Fincantieri has built 30 different types of vessels for Grimaldi.

Carnival Cruise Line takes delivery of 26th ship, Carnival Horizon

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 28 March 2018 28 March 2018

In a traditional maritime handover ceremony held earlier today at the Fincantieri shipyard in Italy, Carnival Cruise Line officially took delivery of the new 133,500-ton Carnival Horizon, the 26th ship in its fleet.

The 3,954-passenger ship will reposition to Barcelona, Spain, where it will depart April 2 on an inaugural 13-night voyage – the first of four sailings from the European port. The ship will then operate a trans-Atlantic crossing before arriving in New York May 23, 2018, for a pierside overnight gala and naming ceremony featuring the ship's godmother, Grammy award-winning musical artist and acclaimed actress Queen Latifah.

Following a summer schedule of 4-night Bermuda and 8-night Caribbean sailings from New York, Carnival Horizon will shift to Miami for a year-round schedule of six- and eight-day Caribbean cruises beginning Sept. 22, 2018.

Carnival Horizon offers several unique and exciting features, including a new Dr. Seuss-themed WaterWorks aqua park, part of the line's exclusive partnership with Dr. Seuss Enterprises, Bonsai Teppanyaki, the line's first teppanyaki venue, and Guy's Pig & Anchor Smokehouse|Brewhouse serving up "real deal" barbecue favorites created by Food Network star Guy Fieri, as well as four new craft beers brewed on board.

The second in the line's highly successful Vista-class, Carnival Horizon also offers fun innovations like the bike-ride-in-the-sky aerial attraction SkyRide, an IMAX Theatre, the Havana section with tropics-inspired staterooms and its own pool, and Family Harbor featuring extra-roomy accommodations and the Family Harbor Lounge. Like its name implies, Carnival Horizon also includes food and beverage outlets offering amazing views with both indoor and al fresco seating options at venues such as Bonsai Sushi, Fahrenheit 555 steakhouse and Library Bar.

"Carnival Horizon is an absolutely stunning ship offering so many ways to 'Choose Fun' both inside and out," said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line. "In addition to the many exciting innovations previously introduced on Carnival Vista, Carnival Horizon offers some new one-of-a-kind features and attractions that make this ship truly special allowing our guests to create a lifetime of wonderful vacation memories," she added.